Fair Exchange
by Wizard1
Summary: With The Misfits. A dance recital and chance discoveries lead to something new. Thank you Red Witch!


Fair Exchange  
  
This fic is mostly inspired by the amazing Red Witch and her Mad, Merry Mutants and Military People, especially the Misfits. The X-Men, New Mutants, and Stevie Hunter belong to Marvel. GI Joe, Cobra, and all related characters belong to Hasbro. Althea Delgado (as she is in the Misfit stories), Xi, the Triplets (Brittany, Daria and Quinn Delgado, aka. Trinity), and Claudius Delgado belong to Red Witch. Only Darla and the unnamed dance students belong to me.  
  
Where else did I get the inspiration for this? In the comics, as we all know, Peter was an artist, and Wanda is a good dancer. However, her dancing is related to her gypsy origins, and as far as I know the Evolved Maximoffs are Americans and always have been. Therefore, a little tweaking to fit continuity. On with the fic!  
  
Wanda Maximoff sat alone on a bench on the mansion's grounds. Her entire day defied the laws of physics- it sucked and blew all at the same time.  
  
Oh, the dance recital itself was good. No- it was great. Of course it was- Stevie Hunter, the Stevie Hunter, directed and choreographed it. Wanda had a chance to see Stevie live once, back when Stevie was dancing professionally and not just teaching. Wanda would never forget that day, no matter how hard she tried. Her father took her. It was a father-daughter day, the best one ever, she thought at the time, and it was the last one, before. she shook her head violently, trying to banish the memory.  
  
A few of the X-Geeks were signed up for a dance class being taught by Ms. Hunter (the Stevie Hunter! Wanda still couldn't believe it). The class became very good, and was signed up to perform in the dance recital Stevie was putting together for Bayville's 'Culture Week.' Kitty Pryde was one of the students, and when the little kitty cat told Lance about it, Lance begged to be allowed to go see it. The adults thought it would be a 'great cultural experience' for the Misfits to see, so they all went, along with the X-Geeks, and numerous threats from the adults of both teams to behave- or else. And, surprisingly enough, no trouble was caused or fights started- well, not at the dance hall or during the recital. The trips to and from the mansion, though.  
  
Part of Wanda hoped it would bomb. She was half tempted to do something. But she couldn't. No matter how much it hurt her to have to watch these beautiful people do well, she couldn't bring herself to do anything.  
  
She decided to take a walk. She couldn't bear to be in the mansion for the reception, to hear all those people praise the girls, and the few guys, for their hard work. She couldn't stand it, not when- she quickly took off. She didn't know where she was going, but she didn't care, either.  
  
***  
  
Peter Rasputin was also taking a walk on the grounds. He had already congratulated everybody- doubly congratulated for Kitty. He had to be alone right now. He had to be able to call up the memories of all he had seen at the dance recital.  
  
Sitting down against a tree in the woods, he withdrew a book that he had carefully concealed inside of his shirt, and opened it to one of the few remaining blank pages, which he marked by placing his pencil there. Hmm. time to get another sketchbook. He picked up the pencil, closed his eyes, and captured an image of Kitty in his mind. There were so many. there! She was just about to jump into the air, but hadn't yet begun her leap. Not perfect, but it was a start.  
  
His pencil flew across the page. In moments- at least, that's how it seemed to Peter- a rough image of Kitty appeared on the page before him. Yes! This was a start. Now, for the specifics.  
  
Peter's pencil resumed its flight. Time fell away- there was only the moment, and the memory. It was easier working with a memory than a mental image, although something concrete was always best. It was a pity he couldn't record the recital- he understood that it was illegal, but it made his task harder. Ah, well. Kitty was worth it. She was more than worth it.  
  
Finally, he was done. There, on the page, was an image of Kitty: smiling, poised, perfect, ready to take flight, like an angel. He glanced at it critically. He began to notice small imperfections- little things, really, but they added up to a drawing that was less than it could have been. Colouring it would cover some of them up, of course, but the drawing would still be less than perfect, and that meant it wasn't fit for Kitty to see. Just like his other drawings of her weren't fit for her to see.  
  
He replaced the pencil, closed the book, put it back in its hiding place, and started back for the mansion. He heard a noise a ways to his right- a woman grunting. Cautiously, he went to investigate. What he found made his eyes widen. Of all the things he expected to see, this was. he never expected to see this.  
  
***  
  
Wanda picked herself up from the ground and snarled. There was no way she was going to go back in there without doing this. She recognized a number of the dance sequences that she saw earlier that day. She may have been out of practice, but she used to be able to do some of these, as God as her witness, she would do at least one. She tried it again, and all else fell away. There was only the dance, and the song she heard inside of her. Step, pause, shift, turn, repeat, but with minor variations and with more moves added, until the last steps barely resembled the first.  
  
It wasn't easy. She was jarred out of the moment many times. Sometimes, she forgot a step. Other times, she fell down. But she kept on, starting at the beginning every time. She became vaguely aware that she was beginning to tire, as she was using muscles she hadn't had to call on in far too long, but that didn't matter. The dance mattered. Finally, she was done. She did it. Not perfectly- far from it- but as well as someone so badly out of practice had a right to expect. And then, she actually heard applause.  
  
She reacted without thinking- she fired a hex-bolt in the direction of the sound. Sure enough, she heard a masculine sounding "Oomph," followed by a crash. She went to investigate. Hello.  
  
It was Metal Muscles. She blasted him against a tree before he could armour up. He was out cold. She quickly checked him over, making sure he was still breathing, that there wasn't anything broken. There wasn't. She noticed something lying on the ground a short distance away from him. It was a sketchbook. He must have been holding.  
  
"Well now," she muttered as she picked up the book, "let's just see what you've been up to." She opened it, and her eyes widened.  
  
***  
  
Peter came to with a great pain in his head. The last thing he remembered was. oh, yeah. He saw Wanda dancing! Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch, as tough as nails, was actually dancing. She was trying to do one of the shorter dances from the recital. She had a lot of false starts, a few falls, and what must have been a few missteps, but every time, she started over again, until she finally did it. Peter clapped, she fired a hex-bolt at him, it made him fly backwards, he obviously hit a tree. He opened his eyes wider. He saw Wanda. Her back was to him, she was squatting on the ground, and it looked like she was reading something. Then he noticed that his sketchbook was gone. It didn't take a genius to figure out what she was reading.  
  
"That's private!" he said as he stood up. Oww- his head- oww.  
  
"So was my dance," she snarled back, not getting up, not looking at him. "What- were you spying on me or something? Afraid I was gonna blow something up in your precious woods?"  
  
"I wasn't spying on you," he scowled. When he left the mansion, he thought he'd be alone out here.  
  
"Then what were you doing? Never mind, I think I know." She stood up and turned to face him with a smirk on her face.  
  
"Sketching the kitty cat, huh?" she had the book open to his latest drawing of Kitty.  
  
"Give me that!" He took a few steps before the trees began to shake violently. Ordinarily he wouldn't care. He was nearly invulnerable when armoured up, and she wouldn't take him by surprise this time. His sketchbook wasn't invulnerable, though, so he stood down. The shaking stopped.  
  
"That's better," she smiled. She picked the pencil back up from the ground, put it in the book, and tossed it to him. He caught it.  
  
"Don't tell anybody," was all she said as she stalked past him.  
  
"Why not?" Peter was puzzled. She did mention that her dance was private, but that was after he said his art was private. He didn't think she really meant it.  
  
His question stopped her.  
  
"Because I told you not to, that's why," she continued on. Stupid X- Geek.  
  
"You were good."  
  
That stopped her cold. She turned to look at him in disbelief. Was that a compliment?  
  
"You weren't perfect," he continued, "but the way you remembered what they did even though you only saw it once, the way you wouldn't stop until you got it right. it was good."  
  
"You mean it?" Wanda couldn't believe it. She remembered Peter from the time before she joined the Misfits. Kept to himself, mostly- he became friends with Gambit, which was probably one of the reasons he switched sides with the Cajun, but that was it. Afterwards. well, those lines were drawn long before Mystique broke Wanda out of that hellhole. Even though she wasn't her father's little servant anymore, the people on the lines stayed on their sides. Except for Lance and Kitty, but that had been going on for awhile. Of course, it just made Metal Muscles even more anti-Misfit than he was before.  
  
"Yes," he said simply. He didn't like any of the Misfits- Remy was his only friend on the Brotherhood before it broke up- but what he saw reminded him so much of his Little Snowflake's practicing ballet that he had to say something. Not the moves themselves, but the I-won't-give-up- until-I-get-it-right spirit.  
  
"Thank you," she said, still disbelieving. She believed him, she just didn't believe that he actually complemented her. She turned and walked on, but didn't get very far. Her memories of her mother were hazy, but she did remember one thing her mother impressed upon her: when someone does something nice, do something nice in return.  
  
"You're a good artist," she said as she faced him.  
  
It was Peter's turn to be surprised. She was complimenting him? She didn't even compliment Quicksilver!  
  
"You draw the kitty cat too much for my taste, and I'm not sure about all of the pictures of Lance, but the rest is good. Really good, actually." The pictures of Lance were disturbing- Lance on a rack, Lance in the stocks while Peter and Kitty walked away smiling, Lance at the guillotine. the funny thing was that most of the 'poses' Lance was in were the poses Lance wished he could find Metal Muscles in. If Lance could draw worth a damn, he do pictures like the one where Peter was Conan, with a mostly naked Kitty hanging on his arm, and the other arm holding aloft a spear with Lance's head on it, only with the roles reversed.  
  
"Thank you," Peter said wonderingly. She liked his sketches? He was talented, he knew that, but these were far from his best work, which he kept carefully hidden in his room. She really liked them? She had to- why else would she say anything?  
  
They headed back to the mansion, silently. They weren't together, but they were going to the same place, so they ended up side by side.  
  
The silence was a little uncomfortable, Peter thought. He knew that he managed to catch a glimpse at the Scarlet Witch's soul, back when she was dancing. They were even, now- she saw some of his art, some of his soul. There was a bond between them, now. It was small, but disturbing. He had never shown his art to anyone at the Institute. No one knew that he could draw, except for Remy, but his finding out was an accident, and even he didn't know that Peter's 'pastime' was much more than that. The only people that knew about his talent were his parents. The only others were his brother, Mikhail, and his sister, Illyana, and they were both dead. And now, of all the people in the world, Wanda Maximoff was added to the list. She saw something of himself that he hadn't seen fit to show to his friends or to the girl he loved.  
  
"May I ask you something?" he finally said, tensing in case she fired another hex-bolt at him.  
  
"What?" she snapped.  
  
"How did you remember the dance so well? You only saw it this once, right?"  
  
Wanda sighed. Damn- he picked up on that. She didn't have to answer him. She decided not to, but some part of her that was- and always had been- contrary urged her to tell him. Why not? He saw the dance, and he wasn't going to say anything, and if he did. she didn't need her hex-bolts to kick his ass.  
  
"I used to dance. A long time ago."  
  
"Really? That's how you were able to remember the steps?" Well, this was news. Peter knew that Wanda had a childhood, but it was one thing to know it and another to see a sign of it. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye. She had a very bitter smile on her face.  
  
"No, Metal Muscles. I used to be able to do that dance. And some of the others. It was." she stopped suddenly. She didn't need to tell him any more than that. He was probably smart enough to figure out what she meant.  
  
Peter nodded. Before her father locked her away. That was what she meant.  
  
"Were you good?" Oh, great move Peter, asking her if she was good. He'd deserve anything she did to him for that.  
  
"Yeah. I was." Wanda felt an old, long forgotten pride return to her. "I was one of the best my instructor ever saw. That's what she kept saying. She said I could become a professional dancer if I kept practicing. I guess it's too late for that now." Oh, lord! What the hell made her say all that to Metal Muscles? She never even told her brother any of that when they were kids, and Pietro was her best friend at the time! She felt her cheeks go red.  
  
Peter noticed her embarrassment. She said more than she meant to. He resolved to keep his mouth shut unless she said anything. He didn't have to wait long.  
  
"Well, you have to know what it's like, being really good," Wanda said hurriedly, desperately trying to change the subject. "You'd probably have been an artist, if my father hadn't come for you."  
  
"No."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"I'd have been a farmer, like my father." Peter smiled bitterly. He wanted to be an artist, but it wasn't possible, not after Mikhail.  
  
"Why not?" Wanda was confused. When she was a kid, she wanted to be a dancer more than anything. Her dreams only changed after she spent time in that hellhole. What happened to Peter?  
  
"My older brother Mikhail was a cosmonaut," he said finally. He really didn't want to dredge all this up, but after Wanda bared more of herself, he figured he could do no less. "You know what that is?"  
  
"An astronaut. Go on."  
  
"Well, he was much older than me. He was supposed to do a few missions, have a career, then come back and take over the farm. By that time, I would have been old enough to have a life of my own. If I wanted to come back, fine. If not, my brother would have a family and the tradition could continue. Also fine."  
  
"So what happened?"  
  
"There was an accident. Mikhail died." There, he said it. No tears yet. Good job, Peter. "After that, my parents needed somebody to look after the farm when they got old. That is my future, after I'm done here."  
  
"Oh." Damn. Just. damn. Somehow, she knew Peter's older brother's death hurt him a lot. Guys were like that- the more they held back, the worse the pain was. What do you say to somebody that lost a loved one? 'I'm sorry' just didn't seem to cut it. She couldn't imagine losing Pietro, or Lance, Freddy, or even Todd. Not to mention Althea, Xi, the Triplets, the babies, or any of the Joes.  
  
"The only people that really encouraged me to be an artist were my parents and Illyana." Peter shut up when he realized what he was saying. He definitely didn't want to bring her up.  
  
"Who's Illyana?"  
  
"Illyana was my younger sister. She died when she was very young. It was before Mikhail, thank god. That would have killed her heart and soul, if not her body. He was her hero."  
  
"I'm sorry," she told him.  
  
"Thank you," he said quietly. They walked on in silence.  
  
"Did she suffer?"  
  
"No. At least, I hope not. She loved to play by the river near our farm, but she wasn't allowed to play there alone. One day, well, we think she snuck off to go play. She didn't come back. Our nearest neighbours live about a mile away downriver from us. A week after her disappearance, they found my sister's favourite doll. It-" he swallowed. "It washed up by their farm. We never found her body."  
  
Oh, man. Oh. Wanda hung her head slightly. In less than five minutes, she learned more about Metal- about Peter than she ever wanted to. The Misfits lived the bad lives. That's part of what made them Misfits and not X-Geeks- they knew about the real world. Still, that didn't mean that some of the X- Geeks didn't lead bad lives. Boom-Boom did, but she only half counted, since she was Brotherhood for a while. Kurt couldn't have had it too easy. And Rogue. she wouldn't wish that power on anyone, not even her father. It figures that it was her. blood family that had it bad. And now, she found out that Peter lost both of his sibs when he was a kid. It was more than she wanted to know. Uncomfortable thoughts were entering her head. On the whole, Al and the triplets actually had it better than a few- not many, but a few- of the X-Geeks: a family that loved them (at least until their mom split), and they still had Shipwreck, and a whole base of crazy-but-loving aunts and uncles (except for Beach Head, but he didn't count), and opportunities that few other kids had but most wanted: the chance to actually be a ninja, to grow up around a large group of heroes. Stop it, Wanda. Don't feel pity for an X-Geek. Don't. Do. Not.  
  
"Pietro must have been very proud of you," Peter said after a while, trying to change the subject. He didn't want to rejoin the party feeling depressed. He didn't want to ruin anybody else's good time.  
  
"He didn't really care," Wanda replied, getting Peter's unspoken point. "He was a little boy, and most little boys don't like dancing. I guess it's different in Russia. I mean, you guys produced Barishnikov, and he was a famous dancer, and that ass. not that you'd appreciate it."  
  
Peter laughed.  
  
"It may surprise you, but some straight guys can appreciate another man's beauty. Yes, he did have a wonderful ass. I'm not attracted to it, but I did notice."  
  
"Beauty?" Wanda teased.  
  
"You know what I mean!" Peter said, mock defensively.  
  
"Do I?"  
  
"Well, I'm an artist. I'm supposed to notice things of beauty." He was silent for a moment. "Damn, you caught me. I admit it. I like the boys, too." He smirked, and paused briefly to let it sink in. "Is your brother free tonight?"  
  
Wanda looked at him in surprise. When she saw that he was joking, she started to giggle. Peter and Pietro? The similarity of their names alone. the giggles turned into full-fledged laughter. Surprisingly, Peter joined her.  
  
They stood laughing for a long time. Somehow, it just seemed right.  
  
"You really want someone high-maintenance, don't you?" Wanda managed through her laughter.  
  
"Yeah," Peter snickered. "You think a dozen roses a week would be enough?"  
  
"Yeah, if you throw in a trip to a beauty spa every two weeks! My brother loves his facials!"  
  
"That is high-maintenance!"  
  
"Face it- the only person that can give him everything he wants is the guy he sees in the mirror!"  
  
The laughter continued, and died. Wanda and Peter looked at each other as they realized what had happened. For the first time in a non- romantic setting, a Misfit and an X-Man actually agreed on something without a clear and present enemy. More than that, they actually laughed together. That was disturbing. They started back to the mansion, again.  
  
"Anyway, I think farming's out of the picture. You're pretty much stuck here, so you should try to be an artist. I bet you hear that all the time."  
  
"No I don't."  
  
"What?" That was surprising. She thought the X-Geeks were as much a mutual admiration society as anything else. Apparently, that only extended to people without talent.  
  
"I guess they don't appreciate talent when they see it," she said.  
  
"Actually, nobody knows about my art."  
  
Wanda looked at him, surprised.  
  
"Why the hell not?" She showed off enough when she was in dance class. Pietro didn't care, but at least her father seemed to enjoy it.  
  
"I don't know. I guess I don't think they'd like it."  
  
"Well, Kitty and Baldy have to encourage you." They had to. It was the sort of thing that the Professor would do, and surely his sort-of girlfriend had to.  
  
"They don't know. Nobody does, except Remy, and he only knows I like to sketch. He doesn't know how far it goes."  
  
"Well, why not?"  
  
"Like I said, I don't think anybody would like my work."  
  
"Even Kitty?"  
  
"NO!" Peter shouted, then blushed. "Please, don't tell Kitty."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
Peter was silent for a moment. He had to say this so that she understood.  
  
"When I show her my work, I want to show her something... something perfect. I've done many works of Kitty. Some, I don't ever want her to see. Others aren't good enough for her to see. I want to give her something good enough for her. If she knew about my other gift, she'd ask to see my work, and I. please, just don't tell her, okay?"  
  
"Okay," Wanda replied simply. Peter was making a mistake. Oh, he was right about not letting her see some of his stuff- the thought of Kitty looking at the 'Conan' picture. Wanda wasn't about to tell the kitty about Peter's art, though. But she wasn't going to tell Peter that he was being stupid. Anyone with a heart would love his work- she already did, even if she only saw a small sample. Kitty was no exception, and even though Wanda was liking Peter right now, she wouldn't give him any advantage over Lance. She couldn't do that to Lance. Besides, the three idiots were just too damned amusing to watch for her to bust the triangle up just now.  
  
"Thank you," he said, gratefully. A disturbing thought crossed his mind. "We've bonded, haven't we?"  
  
"I think so," Wanda sighed.  
  
More silence as they continued their trek back to the mansion.  
  
"It's not as bad as I thought it would be," Peter said when they were almost there. He meant it. He got a look at the person Wanda might have been if her life turned out differently. The person she is now isn't bad, if you can look past the hurt and the temper.  
  
"Ditto," Wanda smiled. Peter actually wasn't a bad guy once you got to know him. He's got more depth than he lets anyone see, that's all. He's much more than just the big, dumb, nice guy. The kitty cat somehow picked up on that- that's probably why she can't choose between Lance and Peter.  
  
When they finally got back to the mansion, just before Peter opened the door, he looked at Wanda and asked, "Have you considered dancing again?"  
  
"What?" Where did this come from?  
  
"Well, you've got experience, and natural talent. You're more than fit enough, and Ms. Hunter is a nice lady who is constantly moaning the lack of students. You spend a lot of time in Bayville as it is. Why don't you try to enter the class?"  
  
"I don't think that's possible," Wanda said. She hadn't even considered. well, of course she hadn't, she didn't want to let the other Misfits know about her dancing. They would make fun of her for it. just like the X-Men wouldn't like Peter's work. Damn, double damn, and triple damn- she bloody well couldn't think him an idiot for not displaying his talent and then do the same thing herself!  
  
"Why not? You're what- 16? 17? There has to be more in your life than just training. We have extracurricular activities here. Why can't you have a life outside of the Misfits?"  
  
"It's an army outfit, Peter," she reminded him- and herself, before she could raise her hopes up too high. A chance to be taught by Stevie Hunter? She wanted that, but then she wanted a lot of things in her life, and hadn't gotten them.  
  
"You're right, I guess. I mean, it's not like GI Joe breaks most of the ordinary rules. I've never seen penguins in the Pit. Families don't live on the base with the soldiers. Your chef isn't an ex-Cobra who makes everything he can out of seaweed."  
  
"Roadblock's the chef," Wanda said absently. "B.A.'s. well, I guess you can call him a cook."  
  
"Your fourth-in-command isn't obsessed with a teddy bear," Peter continued, not missing a beat. "You don't have a spaceship on the base. Do I have to go on?"  
  
"You've got a point," she grumbled. Then she became hopeful. If she asked nicely enough. it would mean having to spend even more time around the kitty cat and some of the other X-Geeks, but that was a small price to pay to be taught by Stevie Hunter.  
  
"Well, there's no time like the present," he smiled as he opened the front door. He motioned her through it.  
  
"Wait a minute," Wanda said shortly after they entered. "I don't like this."  
  
"What's wrong?" Peter asked, confused.  
  
"Listen," was all she said.  
  
"I don't hear anything," Peter told her, still confused.  
  
She looked at him with eyes full of nervous anticipation.  
  
"Exactly," she shuddered, and then she heard some commotion headed in their direction.  
  
"HELP MEEEEEEE!" Jamie screamed as he ran by them. Trinity was hot on his heels. Each girl was wearing a cowboy hat and carrying a lasso.  
  
"Ride 'em, cowboy!" Daria called. "We gotta catch us a wild stallion!"  
  
"Yee Haw!" Brittany and Quinn yelled.  
  
Peter and Wanda exchanged a look, and ran to the drawing room. Claudius and Barney were the only ones in there.  
  
Peter looked at Wanda. "How did they get here?"  
  
"I have no idea."  
  
Little C was scribbling on the walls with crayon. Beaky was watching TV, changing the channels with the remote. Wanda grabbed him when he turned it to a show that. wasn't suited for babies.  
  
"Where is everybody?" she asked as she picked up Claudius.  
  
"Somewhere," Claudius said.  
  
"Somewhere else," Barney added.  
  
"Great," she grumbled. Other than the fading sounds of the Triplets chasing Jamie, no other sounds were heard.  
  
"We have to spread out," she told Peter.  
  
No response.  
  
"Peter?"  
  
Still no response.  
  
"Peter!" she looked for him. He was seated in front of the TV, staring off into space. Moving to his side, she could see he was starting to drool.  
  
"Five gets you ten we'll be blamed for the TV getting this channel," she grumbled as she grabbed the remote and turned it off.  
  
"Hey!" he yelled, and then remembered himself. "Sorry."  
  
"We should spread out," she repeated.  
  
"Pete looking at ladies," Barney giggled.  
  
"Why the ladies have no shirts?" Claudius asked Wanda.  
  
"They. were hot," Wanda stammered. She definitely did not want to have to deal with this now!  
  
"They were very, very, very hot," Peter nodded, beginning to bliss out again. Wanda, hands full with the babies, kicked him in the shin. Hard. "Ahem. We shouldn't spread out. If this place came under attack, we'd have a better chance of staying safe if we stick together."  
  
"The girls and Jamie didn't say we were under attack," Wanda reminded him.  
  
"Oh, right. But they might not have known. Remember the state this place was in after Spiral came here?"  
  
"Yeah." He had a point. "Okay, let's find the kids, then let's look for everybody."  
  
"Deal."  
  
The kids weren't hard to find. They caught up with them in the kitchen. Three Jamies were hogtied, and the girls were crowing in victory.  
  
"We're saved!" one of the Jamies yelled when he noticed Wanda, Peter, and the babies.  
  
"Yay!" the other two crowed.  
  
"Aww." Trinity whined.  
  
"Where is everybody?" Wanda asked.  
  
"Well, a fight broke out," Daria began.  
  
"How?" Peter asked. Everything was going so well when he left, but he had been gone a long time.  
  
"Well, Shipwreck started hitting on Ms. Hunter," a Jamie began.  
  
"Pop wouldn't leave her alone," Daria added. "Then, he got a call from the Pit- the babysitter couldn't handle the babies."  
  
"It was Beach Head," Brittany snickered. "The babies kept playing with Sergeant Snuffles, so Pop had to go get them before Beach Head blew a gasket."  
  
"He wouldn't hurt the babies!" Peter exclaimed in horror. "Would he?"  
  
"No- he'd just go psycho on the base," Daria sighed. "Remind me to tell you about that one Cobrathon a couple years ago."  
  
"Cobrathon?" Peter asked, confused.  
  
"Can I finish the story? So anyway, by the time he comes back, Roadblock moved in on Stevie."  
  
"So he started hitting on Storm again," Quinn finished.  
  
"And she started zapping him," another Jamie said.  
  
"As usual," Wanda grumbled. "Go on."  
  
"Well, it turns out that one of the dance students is Pietro's ex," the Jamie continued.  
  
"WHAT?" Wanda couldn't believe her ears. "My brother actually had a girlfriend? How come I didn't hear about it?"  
  
"That's what the other Misfits said!" the third Jamie told her.  
  
"Anyway," Brittany carried on, "she's dating one of the guy dancers right now, and he and Pietro got into a fight."  
  
"Althea took the girl aside and starting quizzing her," the first Jamie added. "Where did you meet him, how did you meet him, did you two ever do it, you know the drill."  
  
"The girl didn't like it," Quinn smirked. "She and Althea got into a catfight. Jean tried to break it up, but she ended up having both of them wailing on her."  
  
"We didn't see the rest," Daria proclaimed loftily.  
  
"We have better things to do with our time then watch a pack of juvenile adolescents go at it," Brittany sniffed.  
  
"You were chasing me!" all three Jamies screamed.  
  
"A much better use of our time," Quinn smirked and her sisters nodded.  
  
"Anyway, by the time we got back to the room," Daria continued.  
  
"You mean by the time I ran back and you followed me," Jamie #3 muttered.  
  
"We found that everybody was fighting everybody."  
  
"If we have better things to do than watch juvenile adolescents and adults go at it," Quinn broke in, "then we definitely have better things to do than join in."  
  
"Like chasing me!" all three Jamies screamed.  
  
"Anyway, that's all we know," Daria finished.  
  
"Well, not all," Quinn reminded her.  
  
"Oh, yeah! Polly and Lockheed got into the booze."  
  
"Oh lord," Peter groaned. "Just what we need!"  
  
"Sailing, sailing, over the Bounty Main," a raucous voice sang- well, slurred- as its owner flew into the room.  
  
Lockheed, following Polly, hiccupped, and spurted a gout of flame.  
  
"Perfect," Wanda groaned. "You two," she said to the drunken pets, "stay here and just. sleep it off. You six, or four, or whatever- you come with us!"  
  
"Sure," Polly said blearily. "Somewhere oover the rainbooow, waaayyy up highhhh," he started to sing.  
  
"Right," Peter said as he untied the Jamies. The group began to search the mansion. They didn't have to search hard- they just followed the trail of destruction.  
  
It ended in the backyard, by the pool. Stevie Hunter and her human students were standing around in shock. The mutants and the Joes.  
  
"OH MY GOD THEY KILLED EACH OTHER!!!" Peter screamed. His friends and teammates were lying on the ground, along with the Misfits and the Joes.  
  
"Ms. Hunter," Wanda began gently, "what happened."  
  
"There was a fight," she said, still staring. "It came out here. The girl over there-" she pointed at Althea, "said that everybody needed to cool off, and she- she made the water rise out of the pool and splash everybody. But she did it at the same time that that boy over there-" she pointed at Berserker, "was trying to zap the fast boy with the white hair."  
  
"And everybody got shocked," Jamie (back to one by now) groaned. "Way to go, Ray! And yet they won't let me go on any missions."  
  
"It's just like that Cobrathon a couple years ago!" Daria exclaimed. "Only without the plane, tanks, or papayas."  
  
"Tell me about that later," Wanda whispered.  
  
"They're still alive," Stevie continued, "I know. I checked. They're just out cold. Don't worry- I called the ambulance. They're on their way."  
  
"Great," Wanda groaned. So much for ever being allowed in a dance class.  
  
"I'm so sorry, Ms. Hunter," Peter said. "You must think that we're all insane."  
  
"It's okay," she smiled. It was a weak smile, but it was a smile. "Charles warned me that this might happen. Not this-" she pointed at the unconscious bodies, "but he did warn me that you attract disasters."  
  
"That's the understatement of the year," Brittany told her.  
  
"In a way, it's actually a good thing," she continued. "I mean, you all have such energy and stamina- if you could just focus it, you could do anything."  
  
One of the bodies began to groan and get up. It was Jean.  
  
"I'll check on her," Quinn smiled, going to do just that. When she got to Jean, the redhead jerked like she had been shocked again, and fell back unconscious.  
  
"I guess she's still tired," Quinn said innocently as she replaced her taser in its hidden spot.  
  
"Must be," Daria agreed sagely.  
  
"Oh yes," Brittany added.  
  
"Did you really mean what you said about mutants having energy and stamina?" Peter asked.  
  
"Yes I did," Stevie nodded. "In fact, even though I think I'll regret it, I'll see if I can't get Charles to send me a few more students."  
  
"WHAT?" her human students shouted.  
  
"After all this?" a young woman asked incredulously, stepping out from the crowd.  
  
"Yes, Darla, after all this," she said sternly. "If I recall, it was you that started all this by getting into that fight over you ex-boyfriend with the water girl and then the telekinetic girl."  
  
"Althea and Jean," Peter supplied.  
  
"Yes, thank you. Althea and Jean. And Darla, wasn't it you that said 'it doesn't matter what somebody is, as long as they work hard?' Didn't you say that when I announced that some students from the Institute would be joining us?"  
  
"Well, yeah, but-"  
  
"Didn't you mean it?"  
  
"Well, yeah, but-"  
  
Stevie looked at the greater body. "And didn't the rest of you all agree?"  
  
"Well, uh, yeah, but-"  
  
"And you did mean it?"  
  
"Well, yeah, but-"  
  
"But nothing," Stevie said firmly. "This doesn't change a thing. I opened my studio to anybody that was willing to work, regardless of race, religion, creed, or sexual orientation. I won't turn my back on a segment of society now. As long as someone is willing to work their hardest, and give me all they've got, they have a place at my studio. Understood?"  
  
"Yes, Stevie," Darla smiled, and the rest followed suit.  
  
"Good," Stevie replied crisply. "Putting away the soapbox, now," she said, and mimed getting off a soapbox. It drew a laugh.  
  
Wanda smiled in disbelief. Not only was Ms. Hunter a great dancer, but she seemed to be a nice lady too. She hadn't ever thought to meet a human that liked mutants and wasn't insane or in GI Joe. Or both.  
  
Out of the corner of his eye, Peter saw the smile. He nudged Wanda.  
  
"Well?" he asked.  
  
"Yes." She handed the babies to Peter, and approached Ms. Hunter.  
  
"Excuse me, Ms. Hunter," Wanda said nervously, "but I'm a really big fan of yours, and, uh, I'd like to know if I could join your class. I do have dance experience, but I'm out of practice and I admit it, but I know that it shouldn't take me long to get back into it, and my old instructor said I've got great natural talent, and-"  
  
"Well, of course you can." Stevie smiled.  
  
"Oh! I'm Wanda Maximoff."  
  
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Wanda. You're one of the Misfits, aren't you?"  
  
"Yes I am." Oh, lord, here it comes.  
  
"Well, I was talking to. Roadblock?"  
  
"That's his name, Roadblock."  
  
"Thank you. Anyway, Roadblock said he could probably swing it if he talked fast enough, but he didn't think that any of you would be interested." She frowned slightly. "Does he usually talk in rhyme like that?"  
  
"Usually, yes." Wanda smiled. She couldn't believe it!  
  
"I see. Now, I wouldn't want to cause any difficulties for GI Joe, but if it's at all possible, I'd love to have another student in my class. I hope to see you soon."  
  
"Thank you, ma'am!" Wanda shouted, happily. Unless the whole day was a dream, she finally got something she wanted.  
  
"Please, Wanda, all my students call me Stevie. I'm too young to be a ma'am."  
  
"Thank you Stevie!" Wanda smiled, and out of impulse, hugged her. She hugged back, as if she was used to it. Wanda went back to Peter and the rest.  
  
"Congratulations," he said, smiling broadly.  
  
"Thank you."  
  
"So that's what Wanda looks like when she's happy," Claudius observed.  
  
"Very smiley," Barney nodded.  
  
"And you might be seeing more of it from now on, but don't tell any of them." She gestured over to the pile of unconscious bodies. "It's a secret."  
  
"Okay," the babies giggled. They understood secrets.  
  
"Uh oh," Peter frowned, and pointed. The Triplets were standing in the pile, doing things to various people.  
  
"Don't," Wanda said warningly.  
  
"But-"  
  
"Trust me. Don't."  
  
"Okay." He would never have believed it that morning, but he trusted Wanda Maximoff completely.  
  
***  
  
Within a half hour, the ambulances arrived and left, the various mutants and GI Joes were revived, and the party continued. For once, nobody felt up to fighting again. That is, except for those that had lipstick rubbed across their clothes and faces.  
  
"I just hope I can get all that out," Jean grumbled. "That was one of my best dresses!"  
  
Soon enough, the reception was over, the guests left, and it was time to get everything back to normal- as normal as the X-Mansion ever got, that is.  
  
Just before she teleported, she felt something be pressed into her hand. She grabbed on to it automatically. When she was back at the Pit, she looked to see what it was. It was an envelope. Quickly getting back to her room, she opened it up. It held two pieces of paper. The first piece of paper was a note.  
  
Hold on to this. I want to do a happier comparison. Peter.  
  
The second, larger piece. oh my.  
  
It was a colour picture of her. It was her face. She had a royally pissed off expression on her face, but her eyes were somehow sad. He even put some blue in the corneas, suggesting hidden tears. The caption at the bottom read 'Wanda Maximoff, Sad Eyes.' He initialled it- PNR- and wrote the date right beside that. It was from the time when they were both in the Brotherhood.  
  
Wanda smiled as she replaced the note and the picture in the envelope, and realized just how much smiling she had done today. Looking around, she found a place where she could keep it hidden and undamaged. Peter, her new friend, needed it for a comparison piece. A happier comparison piece. Somehow, she knew that wouldn't be a problem.  
  
Fin.  
  
Well, that's it. R&R, please. Flames will be given to Pyro, or used to light Kelly's car on fire. 


End file.
